Sofa-bed.



F. BENNETT.

Patented Feb. 18, 1913.

2 BEEETSSHEPIT 2.

' Afro/mfr l n'uirE]3 s'i'jarEsA PATEM?V oEEIcE.

EEEDERICK BENNETT, 0E EAvENswooD, NEW; YoEK, A'ssrefNoE, EY MEsNE ASSIGN- MENTS,4 To UNITED' STATES- ooRPoRATIQN 0E MASSACHUSETTS.

Tofallwhom t may concern:

"Be it ltno'wn thatJ I, FREDERICK BENNETT,

the following a' full, clear, and exact specification, such as will enable vothers' skilled in the art to which itappertains to make-and use the same.-

' My invention relates to a sofa bed of the type 1n which it 1s not necessary to move the bed from the wall to change its'adjust- "ment 1 rThe object of my invention to increase economy of space, enabling the sofa bed to be used in naj'row contines, -such as city apartment houses.'

A further l'object of the invention is to provide means lfor loweringthe moving parts when fin bed'adwstment so that the bed will lnotbe beyond standard height'and to soorganize these parts` that the'frame or head piece also may be made l'in roper roA portions present-ing theappea-ra-nce of a perfectsofa when in'sofa adjustment,

Still a furtherobject of the invention is toarrange the parts so that'when adjusted .as a `bed theA upholstered surfaces will be oonsp'letelyout ofuse' and'protected, the oc'- cupa-nt lying ,on aY 'standard mattress susy tained by a standard spring.'

Stilla further object of the invention is to provide means for supporting and stretchf ing out the mattress as the parts move to bed adjustment, thus lengthening the'bed V to the'proper point for comfort, but allow- -ing the frame parts to be made small enough' to retain the proper proportions of the sofa.

. My invention has various other objects and involves various other features of -importanee, all ofwhich; will befully set forth particularly pointed outv in t-heclaims.

Reference is nowhad to the accompany-ing drawings, which illustrate, as an example,

the preferred embodiment of the arrangement, and in which draw1ngs;- v

Figure 1 1s a. longitudinal -sectinn showing v Ithe parts in bed adiustlnent, but with part of the mattress vand spring broken away; Fig. 2 1s a sectional view of the parts in sofa adjustment; Fig. 3 is a frag'ijentary sectional e'levation of the connections between Specification of Letters Patent. A'phcation -fned March 17, 1910.

soria-BED.

f 'Patented Feb. 18,1913. serialNo. 550,017.l l

Athe head' or stationary part,`the head sectionofthe folding frame and the seat secoccupant when theparts are in adjustment. The back-board 11 terminates considerably A.abovethe bottom4 'of the body-section and from the lower edge of the back-board cleats: or ribs` 17 project. down to the. tiebar 14, said cleats being fastened 'to the'inner surfaces-of the side walls 10.

18 Vindicates 'guide-cleats which are secured to side walls 10 somewhat forward of the ribs 17 and whic'hincline forward from their lower ends. The parts 17 and 1S serve to guide the moving parts of' the bed as will fully appear hereinafter.

The seat vsection comprises side walls' 19 connected by a horizontal wall 20,- which supports the upholstering 21 of the seat. The lower edges ofv theside walls '19 of the seat-section have their. rear portions horizontal, but their forward portions are inclined downward toward the front as indicated at 22 and are designed to run on and be supported by. the cross-connection 15 of the back orbody section. lllhen the adjustment is changed from a sofa to a bed, the seat section is pulled forward and the edges 22 ride on the cross-connection 15,' thus allo\ \'ingthe seat section a .combined forward .and downward movement as maybe seen by comparison of Figs. 1 and 2.

The folding Aframe comprises a' head and foot section vrespectively formedof side railstionyand Fig. Lisa sectional plan of the down outJ of position over the head of the' METAL PRODUCTS COMPANY, OE NEW YORK, N. Y., A

Which the bed is'used, comprises side walls 10,- which are shaped to constitute, at their 23 and 24 of which there are twd in each section joined together in pairs by hinges 25. The side rails 23 of the headV section of the sliding frame are connected to each other byv a cross-connection 2G, while/the side rails 24 of the foot section of the folding frame are joined by cross-connections 27 and 28 an'gularly disposed 'as shown. Thefconnections 26 and 27 4sustain transverse angle bars 29 by'means of brackets 30 or the like and between 'these angle bars the woven wire or. other 'spring 31 extends, the spring eing joined to and supported by said angle ars.

The sections ofthe folding frame have a hinging jack-knife motion, which will be fully described hereinafter, and which is utilized, among other things, to stretch out the mattress 32 and lengthen the bed to the necessary extent. -The kmattress has its foot end joined to the cross-connection 2S of the foot section of the folding frame as indicated at 33, while its head end is joined to acrossmember 34. To the ends yof the cross-member 34 rodsj35 are rigidly fastened,said rods being two in number' respectively lying against the inner surfaces of the lside rails .23, andbearing'on the head angle iron 29 with the spring 31 between them. 36 indicates guides secured to dependent lateral motion, but allowing them free, 'longitudinal motion. The rods 35 are 'articulated by links 37 to thf respective side rails 24. Preferably this is effected by nnsns of bracket-fixturesl 38 onthe saidside ral 39 indicates fulcrum-pins, which are .fastened respectively to the inner lsides of the rails 23 at the ends adjoining ther'ails 24 and are adapted to coact with the links 37 transforming them into levers When the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 2,

- the links 37 `extend across 4between the rails 23 and 24 and bear against the fulcrurn-pins 39 39. These pins prevent downward motion of thel rods35 and therefore hold them raised until thecross-members 34 are at the same level as the 'head angle 29. `This loosens the mattress which, it will be seen,-

is confined primarily by the spring' `31. When, however, the sections of the folding frame are straightened out as in Fig. 41, the links 37, by reason of their location and the location of the hinge 25, push or advance toward the head of the beu correspondingly and advancing the rods 35 and stretching out the mattress. This pushes'the head end of the mattress toward the wall 11 and practically closes the space between the head ends ofthe side railsv23 and said wall vand lengthens the mattress surface'to that eX-. Upon returning the parts of the folda tent. ing frame to the position shown in Fig. 2, the links 37 first ydraw back or' footward the rails v23 and embracing the rods 35 to limit their inand finally rock against the fulcrumed pins 39 pulling back the rods 35 and returning the parts to the position shown in said view.

The back section of the sofa bed comprises a frame-wall 40 with u )holstery 41 on its exposed side. This bac section, when its parts are 1n sofa adjustment, extends vertlcally with a slight backward inclination and meets the lid or cover-board so thatthe bed concealed when the adjustment, shown in Fig. 2, is made. 'Said frame-wall 40 of the back fits in between the side rails.23 and is pivoted thereto somewhat parts are completely above its lower edge as indicated at 42. The

side rails 23 in turn have pins 43, which proj ect-outward and run in Uuideways 44 formed in the inner sides of the walls- 10. These guideways are horizontally disposed and areI of a length approximately equal to that of the travel of the seat section. The side rails 23 o f the folding frame are further provided at their sides, with projecting pins 45, which are adapted to engage by hooks 46, attached lrespectively to the upper rear corners of the side-walls 19 ofthe seat section, forminga pivotal connection which, however, maybe.

readily separated by detaching the hooks. It will be seen, therefore, that the back section is pivoted at its lower portion by the .pins 42 to the side rails 23, while-its upper edge-is free to have a limited motion backward and forward. y I

For preventing the back from ,falling forward when in sofa adjustment, springs 47 are attached to the upper portion of the back and to the ends of the side rails 23 adjacent thereto. This yielding of the back has an important advantage which will hereinafter develop. It will'alsol be observed that the foldingframe, composed of the side rails 23 tinued forward motion of the seat section and corresponding motion of the folding frame and back finally allow the lower end of the 'folded folding frame to clear the cleats or ribs 17 and wall 11, and'at the end of the motion of the seat-section all of the parts are lowered, owin to the inclines 22, the back section lies on t e seat section, with the upholstery other, and the folding frame will lie folded over the back. Then it is only necessary to lift the foot section of the folding frame upward and swing it through one-half ot a circle, itthen taking the position shown in Fig. 1. In this position the outer or foot 4and 24, has a combined pivotaland sliding ends of the side rails 24 ares'ustained byI-legs 48.@ Of.r thesefilegstheretare 'two -eonnected mil-S124. indicated at# 50S inFig -IL-I'The engaged by ravity latch'52 pivotedat'53 to housing which when the side rails 24 are swun .upward and thence downward reversing t i'eirtposition confines theswngingmotion'of-Lthev gravity latch."A This latch, when the parts arefin-the position shown in Fio. 1, fallsf-ntorthe'notch 51 andlocks the legs t but when-tlie'position of the foot section of the -foldingframe is reversed the latches are'belowthe-legs andthen fall back upon the case 54 disengaging the legs and allowing them to-fold downward between the side rails 24 preparatory to the folding up of the folding `frame. Whenthe'parts are opened, as above described, as the foot sectionof the foldin frame finally swings downward and outwardr the legs also swing downward into operative position andthe latch engages them, as explained.

Whenthe parts are in the above-described bed adustment, should aheavy person lie on the bec there would be danger of the spring 31 sagging until it rested u on the `back 40. To prevent this, a series o springs 55 are arranged between the back section and the spring 31. These springs are attached to the woven spring 31 and to the back 40 and are, of course, inactive when the arts are in the sofa adjustment, but when tie .parts are .in the bed adjustment the springs 55 sustain the middle of the mattress and preventv the occupant of the bed from resting upon the back 40. Further, the upper'end of theback being allowed a pivotal motion lby reason' ofthe pins 42, the back'is compressed firmly withfits upholstery against the upholstery of theseat and a yielding e'ect 1s produced throughout which adds reatly tov the com'-V fort of the occupant. Tide springl will be held up when in sofa adjustment by the springs 55, but if additional security in this directioniis desired, springs 56 may be employed.` These are attached to the woven spring 3l and to the siderails 23 at their inner. ends "andserve to'hold. the-spring up in theposition shownV in Fig. 2.

'The construction and arrangement of parts'which lI have resorted to,rasabove described,.enables me to attain numerous important advantages, all of them resulting in the production ofa-sofaofperfectl ,con-

ventional :appearance without Lthe'islightest suggestion'- of a'j bed '-fwh'en in sofa 4position'.4 andi-.ca able-fof any degree ofornamenta-l 4,ti o.n,'w ilewithoutlmovmgthe-bodyor sta- 1 .tionaryart'of fthefstrulcture away fromthe w'all'an" :by simply lliftirigtthe ldfo'r cover l6tlie top of the back may bgruped and vthe back and folding frame thrown down on .the seat, simultaneously lowering and proj'cctingthe seat. The final operation of -transforming-the structure into a bed consists simpl in turning over the foot section 'of the fol ing frame, the legs 48 automatically swinging out and being locked in position. To restore the structure to sofa adjustment, the operation is simply reversed, the foot section of the folding frame being thrown back upon the head section and the back and folding frame being rocked up on the pivots 45, whereupon by the combined action of the slideway 44 and guides 17 and 18 the parts are returned to the position shown in Fig. 2, and compressed tightl together by reason of the inclination o the guides 18. It is further pointed out that the guides 18 at this time serve to hold the sea-t section and the head section of the folding frame from swinging outward. They also serve to position the seat section properly and cause it to match with the other ornamented parts of the structure. The bed clothes and pillows may be folded in with the mattress or disposed of in any way desired.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A sofa-bed having in combination, a main or stationary section, a slidable seatsection and a movable back-section, a foldable section comprising head and foot-members hinged together and pivotal connections between the head-member and the back-section, whereby said back section may be folded down upon the seat and the head member moved forward and downward upon the back-section.

2. A sofa-bedhaving in combination, a main or stationary section, a movable seat and back-section, a foldable section comprising a. head-member and a foot-member hinged together, pivot-connections between the head-member and the back-section, and connections between the side-walls of the main or stationary sect-ion and the head-- member, whereby the back-section and said head-member may be folded down upon the seat.

,3. A sofa-bed having in combination, a main or stationary section, a movable seat and back-section, a supplmcntary foldable section comprising a head-member and a foot-member hinged together, a mattress supported upon the foldable section, pivotal connections between the head-member and the seat-back to permit the simultaneous forward and downward movement of said headmember and seat-back, connections between the side-walls of the main or stationary secposition.

lOU

Aa sofa-bed vhaying -1 in c zomloina'tion,` a i ;1statlonaryf .sect1on, a movable seat-f v *and ck-'section, andi a? supplementary old'-l -4 ,fable"sect-ioncoml osecl'of` a lhead-member and- '.af-I footfmember iinged @,tovetlier, a. mattress .'snpportedau onthe 'folda lepsectionypivot'f 5' ,connect-ionsw etweenthe h'ead'rmember-f and ythe'seat-backextension-rods connected to the f ma ttres's-hea 'memberg amattressesupported upon the foldable 4sctio'nme nns for stretching the mattresstotghten*the same, and springs for sustaining the middle portion of the mattress out of'contact with the seat-back.

G. A-'sofa-bed having in combination,l a main or stationary section, a movable seat and back-section, a supplementaryfoldable section composed of hinged head and 'foot members, saidmovable seat andfback-section ada ted to support the foldable section when snit supplementary foldable section is in extended position, pivot-connections between the head-member and the seat-back, connections between the side walls of the stationarysisection and the .head-member, whereby the lseat and back-sectionra'nd the connected ends-of the foldablesectionare capable of being'movedforward and downward and .thef other'endsI of said foldable section rear- `..war d and upward. T. A-sofa-bed having in combination, a vmam or stationary'section, a movable seat and back-section, a supplementary foldable section comprising hinged head and footmembers, a mattress supported upon the foldable section, rods or. bars fastened to the Vhead-member,links pivoted to the foot-member and to the rods or bars, whereby the mattress, when in extended position, may bc stretched to tighten the same, pivot-connections between the head-member and the back, connect-ions between the side walls of the stationary section, whereby the seat and back section and the connected ends of the foldable section are capable of a forward and downward movement, and fulcrum pins upon which the links connecting the bars to the foot-section are adapted to operate in lowering or raising the foldable section.

, In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FREDERICK BENNETT.

Witnesses:

B. Breen, F. C. 'MARTIN Copterofthis patent may be obtained for tive .cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

